Speaker Berri Tells Government Actions Speak Louder than Words

Speaker of the Parliament, Nabih Berri, delivered this Friday a threefold speech marking the Resistance and Liberation Day, Jerusalem Day, and Eid al-Fitr, whereby he stressed that the Deal of the Century was a “wizardly” formula for reviving partition and federalism projects from within the Palestinian gate.

“As Lebanese, we reject this humiliating Deal and [denounce] resettlement,” he stressed, underscoring “the legitimacy of the Palestinian resistance. The closer we stand by Palestine, the more we uphold our homelands.”

Berri warned against the jarring noise rising in Lebanon and calling for federalism to resolve the crises under which burden the country is writhing, affirming that “neither hunger nor any other misfortune will lead us to give in to any Zionist scheme.”

“The time has come for the Lebanese to end their political rivalries, which only lead to disturbing public order. We ought to stop throwing accusations left and right, and start shouldering our responsibilities, for the sake of liberating Lebanon, both from its judicial and its political shackles.”

Calling for “the reinvigoration of political life by means of a new non-sectarian electoral law — with Lebanon as a single constituency,” the Speaker sternly upheld the independence of the judiciary, and called upon both the authority and the opposition to bring to mind all the values that have made liberation a possibility “so as to accomplish the greatest jihad; that of liberating Lebanon from all violations.”

“It is high time we stop exchanging accusations and start assuming responsibilities,” he corroborated.

Dwelling on the electricity dossier, Berri stressed the need to “free” the energy sector from the mentality of regional, sectarian and federal quotas by appointing a new “clean-handed” board of directors.

Turning to the present economic circumstances prevailing over the country, the Parliament Speaker deemed it “inconceivable that food and health security, and the fruit of the Lebanese people’s lifelong labor, should be the victim of an incorrect banking policy. From where we stand, we thus reiterate that citizens’ deposits are sacred.”

“The government is asked to stop biding its time, waiting for what the negotiations with the IMF and donor countries may lead to, and start taking action on the ground, rather than merely drawing plans. Actions speak louder than words,” Berri concluded.